Osama bin Laden's radical Islamism, too, harbours a deeply hierarchical and paternalistic streak. Bin Laden projects the image of a charismatic leader and fearless defender of the faith. His religious fundamentalism fuels his struggle against what he considers to be pernicious alien influences. In the Arab world, globalization is usually associated with American economic and cultural dominance. As we noted in Chapter 1, religious organizations like bin Laden's Al Qaeda terrorist network feed on the common perception that western modes of modernization have not only failed put an end to widespread poverty in the region, to but that they have also enhanced political instability and strengthened secular tendencies in their own societies.